Compelling football, tribal combat – but Eastbourne Borough and Worthing can’t be separated

The ReachTV Stadium equalled its previous attendance record of 3,662 to form a passionately noisy arena for this crucial National South showdown – which left neither club fully satisfied but both clubs still chasing the title. On balance, Worthing will have travelled home the happier, having leapfrogged Truro City to take a single-point lead with just two fixtures remaining.

Borough 1 Worthing 1 in pictures by Lydia and Nick Redman.

Eastbourne, only two points off the top but slipping to fifth place, came achingly close to claiming victory after almost relentless second-half pressure against a Rebels side reduced to ten men – after the early dismissal of centre-back Aaran Racine for an ugly foul on George Alexander. But Worthing, strong and organised, had their own chances after taking a first-half lead, and they bravely withstood a second-half siege.

Priory Lane was packed to the rafters, with every available space utilised, and rippling with the right sort of passion: a proper sporting contest and a credit to both clubs. At least, that was true for a good three and a half thousand of the supporters. The afternoon was tainted by a small section of the away support, mostly youthful, fuelled by testosterone or alcohol or both, who appeared in search of trouble.

In a tightly packed phalanx in the north-east corner, they spent much of the first half taunting the home support before setting off a flare, and despite stewards’ intervention they persisted with provocative conduct. The many hundreds of proper, sane and affable Worthing supporters must have cringed; but their fine football club will always rise higher than a bunch of mindless adolescents.

But back to what mattered: the quest for three points and the on-field battle of wits, tactics and skills – and strong nerves. The ninety minutes simply rippled with action and the victory could genuinely have gone to either club. The Sports had better chances, and more of them, but Worthing’s ten – plus substitutes – were heroes. One team with the will to win, and one team with the will not to be beaten.

The home side pressed from the very first whistle, and Yahaya Bamba’s electric burst into the Worthing box signalled that pace would be their most potent weapon. The Rebels responded in kind, with Mo Faal racing forward to draw a foul from Freddie Carter – back in the Borough line-up after a three-month injury – but the free-kick was played too long.

Steadily, the home side began to dominate, with formidable ball-winning by midfielders Jack Clarke and Jason Adigun, and the Rebels were defending deep. Only once in the first 20 minutes did the visitors get clear sight of goal – a neat triangular move playing in Faal, who shot was well saved.

Then 24 minutes in came the flashpoint that would sour the match and change its dynamic – from balanced contest to trench warfare. George Alexander, the league’s leading scorer and a threat to any defence, was felled by a Racine elbow, followed up with some apparent words of venom. Referee Harry Jones – whose control was outstanding throughout – spoke briefly with his linesman and sent off the veteran defender.

The ten-man Rebels would now dig deep, battling heroically – and legally – for three-quarters of the match. And on 35 minutes they stunned the whole stadium when Borough failed to clear their lines and Temi Babalola’s piercing pass found Glen Rea, who smashed Worthing ahead 1-0.

Half-time came and went, with Alexander replaced by Alfie Pavey – and the seasoned striker changed the game on 56 minutes. Clarke delivered a wicked free-kick from wide left for Pavey to flick a downward header past Lucas Covolan for 1-1.

Could the Sports now take all three points? They probably should have done, but Covolan produced an outstanding final half-hour in the Worthing goal to deny them. Jayden Davis struck one good chance at the keeper and another one wide of the left post, and Pavey saw another goalbound header brilliantly saved.

Worthing’s forays forward were relatively few, Odie Martin-Sorondo striking one effort wide, but for the visitors now it was all about the Alamo. The minutes slipped by, the Sports strained every sinew and tried every route, but the Rebels were magnificent in defending their fortress.

The very final minutes saw Borough go desperately close, Pavey heading too high on 87 minutes from David Sesay’s assist – while in a rare break Wright denied Lian Nash in stoppage time. But in the final resort, nothing could separate these two fine teams, and the National South title race will go to the wire.

There is a set of results – albeit unlikely – which could still see the Sports take the title, but their more realistic final target is second or third, and a favourable set of play-off fixtures. Meanwhile, Easter Monday sees Worthing take the field at Woodside Road, knowing that a victory over Dorking Wanderers puts the title firmly in their grasp.

What a season, and what a season’s climax!